Detroit mall security guards face trial over man's death in 2014

Three security guards are due in court this week on charges of killing a man at a suburban Detroit mall more than a decade ago, The Associated Press reported.

Onlookers said McKenzie Cochran, 25, was pushed to the ground in 2014 during a fight following an argument at a jewelry store in Northland Center.

They said the unarmed man, a black man, repeatedly told guards, “I can't breathe,” while facing the ground.

The Oakland County District Attorney consulted with the U.S. Department of Justice at the time but did not file charges.

But in 2021, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed manslaughter charges against four men.

Cochran's case received renewed attention in 2020 amid outrage over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was pinned to the ground by police in Minneapolis.

Prosecutors have not alleged that race played a role in Cochran's death.

However, they accused the guards of using excessive force by holding Cochran while he lay face down on the ground for up to 15 minutes.

Cochran, who suffered from an enlarged heart, died of asphyxiation, according to an autopsy.

Defense attorney Blake Wright said the charges were politically motivated.

He told AP: “This clearly has to do with what happened to George Floyd and police misconduct across the country. This case is just completely different from any other. These are security guards just trying to subdue a man who has mental health issues.”

One of the four, Lucius Hamilton, pleaded guilty on Friday. He will be sentenced in October.

The other guards on trial are John Seiberling, Gaven King and Aaron Maree.

In court documents, defense attorneys said the men acted in self-defense.

They said the owner of a jewelry store called mall security and reported that Cochran was acting “crazy” and threatening to kill someone.

And that Seiberling and a senior security guard, Gary Chaffin, asked Cochran to leave the mall, but he did not do so.

According to the records, Cochran charged at Chaffin, who sprayed him with pepper spray. Prosecutors acknowledge that Cochran “actively resisted” and “overpowered” the guards.

Three more guards arrived and all five landed on the ground with him.

When Southfield police arrived, Cochran was lying motionless, handcuffed behind his back.

Chaffin is not part of the case; he died three years later in 2017.

Former Detroit medical examiner Dr. Carl Schmidt is scheduled to testify for the prosecution.

He reviewed autopsy reports and said Cochran's death should probably be classified as a homicide.

The jury selection begins on Monday.